AFL trade news: Port Adelaide has secured Aliir Aliir from Sydney

Aliir Aliir has signed a four-year deal at Alberton. But was Port’s move to recruit him designed to cover up the Dougal Howard trade? List boss Jason Cripps gives an answer.

Sydney defender Aliir Aliir is being courted by the Power but still has a year left to run on his contract at the Swans. Picture: Matt Turner/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Port Adelaide’s move to recruit Aliir Aliir to bolster its defence is not an admission its backline was caught short by the decision to trade Dougal Howard a year earlier, list manager Jason Cripps says.

The Power landed its two main targets of the trade period by adding Aliir from Sydney and Essendon goalsneak Orazio Fantasia.

Cripps told FIVEaa Port Adelaide had identified that it needed a strong intercept defender which led to Aliir joining the club on a four-year deal.

But he said the move was to help cover the loss of retiring utilities Justin Westhoff and Jack Watts more so than Howard who was traded to St Kilda last season.

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Aliir Aliir signed a four-year deal to join Port Adelaide.. Picture: Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

The decision to trade Howard to the Saints helped Port Adelaide free up salary cap space and allowed the Power to reposition itself in the draft and effectively land Mitch Georgiades with Pick 18 in 2019.

“There’s been a lot of discussion around that but if you look at this year and what those guys down back were able to do ... we were the best defensive team in the competition in terms of score against and number one for opposition marks in our defensive 50,” Cripps said.

“They were able to get the job done and play a defensive system that really suits the guys we currently have down there.

“The reason behind Aliir was we lost Justin Westhoff and Jack Watts who retired, both those guys offer some real versatility, so we thought Aliir has shown over the journey he’s capable of playing different roles but we certainly liked his strengths as a key defender.

Elite interceptor ✅
Incredible athlete ✅
Multiple positions ✅

Get excited for what Aliir Aliir will add to our playing group 💪#weareportadelaide pic.twitter.com/wBS1WGsj8d

— Port Adelaide FC (@PAFC) November 11, 2020

“We think he suits our system, he’s a good intercept mark, has really good IQ and suits the way we like to defend.

“The list management team, myself, Chris Davies, Ken Hinkley and the recruiting team led by Geoff Parker, we worked really closely to identify what are the gaps on our list in the short and long term, what are our strengths, what type of player do we need to bring in, then narrow it down in terms of those players and what attributes do they have that can compliment the players we already have.”

Port Adelaide’s primary objective in next month’s draft is to secure next generation academy prospect Lachie Jones who played in the SANFL premiership with Woodville-West Torrens.

“I think he was one of the fortunate ones to play footy every week, it’s a fair advantage over the Victorian boys, playing SANFL seniors and at a consistent level he’s shown he can play down back but we think over time he can potentially go through the midfield as well,” Cripps said.

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Bizarre reason that held up Aliir’s Port trade

- Simeon Thomas-Wilson

Port Adelaide recruit Aliir Aliir says the prospect of cementing a spot as a key defender in a premiership contender convinced him to join the Power on a four-year deal.

After coming to Adelaide to tour Alberton on Monday, and having dinner with new teammates Tom Jonas and Ryan Burton, Aliir agreed to a four-year deal to move to the Power from Sydney in exchange for a future second-round pick.

He told The Advertiser the move to the Power only really heated up last week, after he could actually physically talk following end-of-season surgery on his jaw.

Aliir Aliir is likely to settle in defence for the Power. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“Chris Davies (Port Adelaide general manager of football) had been trying to get in contact with my management and Paul (Connors) and Robbie (D’Orazio) kept saying, ‘Mate, he can’t talk, he’s just had jaw surgery, so he can’t talk properly’,” Aliir said.

“So, from last week when I could actually talk properly I was able to get on a zoom call with them and the plan was to get me to Adelaide and see everything and from there it all moved pretty quick.”

At 195cm and deployed by the Swans in defence, attack and in the ruck, the 26-year-old looks to be a perfect replacement for the recently retired swingman Justin Westhoff on paper.

But Aliir, who has played 64 games since making his debut in 2016, said his conversations with Ken Hinkley and other Port football staff members had been around him playing as a key defender.

Despite having the stingiest defence in the AFL in 2020, Port’s backline was still labelled as too short on occasions after Geelong’s Tom Hawkins and Brisbane’s Eric Hipwood caused some serious damage.

Aliir, who becomes the equal-tallest defender on Port’s list with Jarrod Lienert, said he wanted to cement himself in the backline.

“To be honest, the position I play I’ve always been versatile and able to play different positions, but I have always seen myself as a backman and Port sort of said to me that they do see me as a key backman,” he said.

“Obviously, they do have Tom Jonas and Tom Clurey down there who are great players but I think they have been a bit undersized and lacked a bit of height there and they saw me as a guy who could fit in their backline and provide that height and intercept marking.”

Aliir Aliir has joined the Power. Picture: Michael Klein

North Melbourne champion David King said Port Adelaide had potentially pulled off a masterstroke with the acquisition of Aliir.

“There’s something special about this guy. You see him do things and go, ‘Wow’. Can you see him do it three times a fortnight, six, ten? I know this might sound crazy, but he’s got the potential to be an All-Australian type centre-half back slash ruckman,” King said on Fox Footy.

“He’s a different talent. I really like this selection, it gives you more than coverage ... he can pinch-hit forward, he can certainly play centre half-back and what he does do he does at speed. He marks the ball and he’s gone, he creates scores.

“The Swans have given him very strong parameters to work in, no-risk football. I think we’ll see the real Aliir Aliir at Port Adelaide.”

Aliir said he hoped he could help Hinkley’s side take the next step after going down to Richmond by a goal in the preliminary final.

“To come to a team that is in the premiership window that is keen to have me gives me a lot of hunger and desire to go over there and get into pre-season and hopefully I can help them,” he said.

The Power will have until 7pm Adelaide time on Thursday to secure a move for Essendon’s Orazio Fantasia to come home to South Australia.

The Bombers have so far resisted Port’s offer of pick 29 for the livewire forward, who still has a year on his contract, but an exchange of later selections might be able to get the deal done.

Adelaide has told GWS it is either pick 40 for Jackson Hately or it will take him for nothing via the pre-season draft, after the Crows previously said they were confident a trade would be sorted for the Central District product.

Originally published as AFL trade news: Port Adelaide has secured Aliir Aliir from Sydney